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It’s 2020 MLB Draft day!
But before the festivities begin, we must take a sixth and final look at who the San Francisco Giants might select with their 13th overall pick.
Let’s not waste any time, because we’re a few hours away. Here are the final mock drafts to feast your eyes on before one of these players — or someone else! — is officially welcomed into the Giants organization.
As a reminder, click on the player’s name for that mock draft. You can find the Fangraphs big board here.
Keith Law, The Athletic
They’ve been linked to Soderstrom since I started projecting the first round a month ago. I’ve also heard them a little with Nick Bitsko and Mick Abel, as well as with Garrett Crochet, but it seems like everyone is assuming they take Soderstrom if he’s here. Since I have him going at No. 9, though, that doesn’t work. They’re one of the few teams open to high school arms in the top half of the round.
Age: 21.3
Height: 6’3”
Weight: 215
Fangraphs ranking: 7
Fangraphs FV: 50
This is the first mock draft I’ve seen with Kjerstad going to San Francisco, and I think it’s the first mock I’ve seen where he’s even available when the Giants pick. It’s also one of the first time I’ve seen Tyler Soderstrom — often linked to the Giants — off the board when #13 rolls around. But as you’ll soon see, that’s now a trend.
Kjerstad is one of only seven players in the draft that Fangraphs assigned a future value of 50 or higher to, so it’s easy to see the Giants jumping on him if he falls to them.
Kiley McDaniel, ESPN
It might seem odd to take another catcher after the Joey Bart selection last year, but with a universal DH possibly permanent and every team believing in just taking the best player, this wouldn’t be that odd. The Giants were hot after Wolfpack shortstop Will Wilson last year and ended up trading for him last winter. Justin Foscue and Crochet are also in the mix.
Age: 21.0
Height: 6’2”
Weight: 192
Fangraphs ranking: 12
Fangraphs FV: 45+
Bailey is another name that I hadn’t seen mocked to the Giants before. And, just as in Law’s mock, Soderstrom is off the board in McDaniel’s (both writers had the Colorado Rockies taking the Northern California prep catcher with the 9th pick, so there’s likely some intel there).
While Bailey doesn’t have the sentimental value of Soderstrom (whose father was selected 6th overall by the Giants in the 1993 MLB Draft), I stand by the claims I made about drafting a catcher: The Giants should not hesitate to do so if he is the best player available. It’s simply too rare for a 13th pick to make the Majors as a productive player, at the position they were drafted at, for the team that drafted them, to worry about positional redundancy.
McDaniel also mocked the second round and competitive balance rounds, and had the Giants selecting prep RHP Justin Lange with the 49th pick, followed by Texas A&M RHP Christian Roa and East Tennessee State RHP Landon Knack with their 67th and 68th picks.
Jim Callis, MLB Pipeline
Tyler Soderstrom, C, Turlock High School (California)
With Hassell, Soderstrom and Abel, the Giants are leaning toward high school talent. Cavalli and Mitchell are their top college options.
Age: 18.5
Height: 6’2”
Weight: 200
Fangraphs ranking: 20
Fangraphs FV: 45
Ahhh, there’s Soderstrom, the player who has been mocked to the Giants more than anyone else this year. Early mock drafts almost exclusively had the Giants drafting high school players, though there’s been a large shift in more recent mocks.
Jonathan Mayo, MLB Pipeline
Tyler Soderstrom, C, Turlock High School (California)
There could be interest in Bailey here, but signs point more toward high school bats, with Soderstrom getting the edge over Hendrick.
Age: 18.5
Height: 6’2”
Weight: 200
Fangraphs ranking: 20
Fangraphs FV: 45
If you absolutely had to put money on one player getting picked by the Giants, Soderstrom still seems like the smart choice.
Carlos Collazo, Baseball America
There could be a wider range of opinions with Cavalli than many other college arms. His upside is significant and he has one of the better bodies in the class, but some teams are skeptical of his history of throwing strikes—particularly prior to this spring, when he showed improvement in that category. If Soderstrom is available here, we find it hard to believe the Giants would let him get past them. It sounds like the Giants might like Arizona catcher Austin Wells, but not enough to take him over some of the players still available at 13.
Age: 21.8
Height: 6’4”
Weight: 225
Fangraphs ranking: 17
Fangraphs FV: 45
If they’re going the pitcher route, I’d personally be a bit more interested in the high upside, less proven arms of Mick Abel or Nick Bitsko. One, if not both figure to be on the board when the Giants pick.
Eric Longenhagen
Justin Foscue, 2B, Mississippi State
I wonder if they’d consider Bailey here since he and Foscue are similar: younger up-the-middle college players who performed on paper.
Age: 21.3
Height: 6’0”
Weight: 201
Fangraphs ranking: 26
Fangraphs FV: 45
Yet another mock that has Soderstrom going to the Rockies. It’s apparently time to get ready for him hitting Coors Field dingers off Giants pitchers.
I don’t think Foscue is exactly an exciting pick like some other potential names, but it’s hard to really say that without knowing what type of development the organization sees for him with some tweaks.
And there we have it. A few weeks ago it seemed like the mock drafts were narrowing in on targets for the Giants, but now they’re more spread out than ever before. It seems the only consensus the analysts have is that the Giants would like to draft Soderstrom, but that he’s not likely to be available.